COMPUSA does not want your business

Dear Sir,

CompUSA's return policy is meant to provide the customer with a
reasonable way to get the right product, maintain satisfaction, and
become/remain a customer for life. Unfortunately, in cases where the
product is not defective, certain situations necesitate a restocking
fee. The reason other competitors such as Fry's Electronics and others
offer the "realistic return policy" is because they have a "3 strikes
out" policy for SALE of products. When a product is returned to those
stores, they put the product back on the shelf until it is returned 3
times. This means that rather than spending money to ship the returned
product to the manufacturer, they put it on the shelf and hope it
either works, or that the customer will not return it before return
window expires. CompUSA does not sell returned or opened products. Our
policy is meant to be realistic for both the consumer and the supplier.
Which of us is looking out for the customer more? The company that
sells you a returned product which you will have to return 99% of the
time, or the company and does its best to prevent the need to to return
all together?

I empathize with you, because you seem to be one of our honest
customers, but unfortunately, there are people out there that exploit
return policies to use them to score rebates and then return the
product, or use CompUSA as a free rental. Always consult a rep (I know
there are some dumb ones), but find a GOOD rep at the store before
buying a product you are unsure of. The GM should not of been so
"frank" with you about the policy, but he made a point. You are both
right though. A vicious cycle. There is a thin line between good
business and customer service.

By the way, our return policy is now 21 days, and restocking fees are
only added to full refunds for non-defective products. Store credit and
exchanges don't apply to the best of my knowledge. For a full
description of our return/exchange policy you can consult
http://www.compusa.com.
I am from Austin, TX... but I am in the Washington D.C. area, but if I
were in your region I would gladly assist you in business through
CompUSA. I am sorry for your troubles my friend.

Nick Garrett
Business Solutions
CompUSA Corporate


wrote:
I went to the local COMPUSA here in Hurst, Texas this morning to
purchase a
CF reader. I picked one and asked the employee behind the camera
shelf
about the return policy. He said check with the service desk because
"the
return policy changes DAILY". I asked the service person and was
directed
to the general mgr. He promptly told me it was store policy that
every item
in the store was subject to a 15% restocking fee for returns. I asked
if
COMPUSA would stand behind inoperable or defective mdse. and he said:
"We
are not in the business for customers to take stuff home to try it
out and
see if it works". I thanked him and walked out of the store. I left
the
store without a card reader. There are PLENTY of other retailers
that will
offer a more realistic return policy for my business. COMPUSA is a
store
that has proven that it does not care for the customer.

I have found CompUSA to be very uneven in all phases of its operations,
though it seems to be improving a bit, and store dependent. A couple of
years ago I purchased a returned subnote which had never had its hard
drive checked or reformatted, so I was stuck with cookies, caches, and,
scarily, very personal information left on the computer by its previous
owner (who had simply 'deleted' data files) that I could have used to
his disadvantage -- pointers to porno and other sites which revealed his
business and financial interests. It took almost a week of lost time to
have the store sort this out and get me my computer (which has worked
beautifully ever since). Oh, and the low price included a help desk
service which, though complicated to reach, did help me once.

Floor sales people are uneven and sometimes poorly trained, though some
can be superb. Inventory control can be inaccurate, or sales associates
cannot find inventory listed in the computer on the floor. Sometimes a
call to the store gets a knowledgeable person, sometimes a brush off.
The website sometimes suggests products are in-store when they are not.
And then there is the recent rebate action by the government. And, the
store simply does not carry a lot of products that are increasingly
important -- eg. a good selection of USB devices and enclosures, etc. at
good price. As I said I see some improvements (including less high
pressure to get service plans) and, certainly those discussed by the
poster are quite welcome. But it is still caveat emptor too much of the
time.

wrote:
Dear Sir,

CompUSA's return policy is meant to provide the customer with a
reasonable way to get the right product, maintain satisfaction, and
become/remain a customer for life. Unfortunately, in cases where the
product is not defective, certain situations necesitate a restocking
fee. The reason other competitors such as Fry's Electronics and others
offer the "realistic return policy" is because they have a "3 strikes
out" policy for SALE of products. When a product is returned to those
stores, they put the product back on the shelf until it is returned 3
times. This means that rather than spending money to ship the returned
product to the manufacturer, they put it on the shelf and hope it
either works, or that the customer will not return it before return
window expires. CompUSA does not sell returned or opened products. Our
policy is meant to be realistic for both the consumer and the supplier.
Which of us is looking out for the customer more? The company that
sells you a returned product which you will have to return 99% of the
time, or the company and does its best to prevent the need to to return
all together?

I empathize with you, because you seem to be one of our honest
customers, but unfortunately, there are people out there that exploit
return policies to use them to score rebates and then return the
product, or use CompUSA as a free rental. Always consult a rep (I know
there are some dumb ones), but find a GOOD rep at the store before
buying a product you are unsure of. The GM should not of been so
"frank" with you about the policy, but he made a point. You are both
right though. A vicious cycle. There is a thin line between good
business and customer service.

By the way, our return policy is now 21 days, and restocking fees are
only added to full refunds for non-defective products. Store credit and
exchanges don't apply to the best of my knowledge. For a full
description of our return/exchange policy you can consult
http://www.compusa.com.
I am from Austin, TX... but I am in the Washington D.C. area, but if I
were in your region I would gladly assist you in business through
CompUSA. I am sorry for your troubles my friend.

Nick Garrett
Business Solutions
CompUSA Corporate


wrote:

I went to the local COMPUSA here in Hurst, Texas this morning to

purchase a

CF reader. I picked one and asked the employee behind the camera

shelf

about the return policy. He said check with the service desk because

"the

return policy changes DAILY". I asked the service person and was

directed

to the general mgr. He promptly told me it was store policy that

every item

in the store was subject to a 15% restocking fee for returns. I asked

if

COMPUSA would stand behind inoperable or defective mdse. and he said:

"We

are not in the business for customers to take stuff home to try it

out and

see if it works". I thanked him and walked out of the store. I left

the

store without a card reader. There are PLENTY of other retailers

that will

offer a more realistic return policy for my business. COMPUSA is a

store

that has proven that it does not care for the customer.

Interesting, because when I recently bought a printer from a store in
Northern California and asked if they still charged a restocking fee the
manager told me "No", not any more. I guess he lied! Hmmm.

wrote in message
ups.com...
Dear Sir,

CompUSA's return policy is meant to provide the customer with a
reasonable way to get the right product, maintain satisfaction, and
become/remain a customer for life

"Dave R knows who" wrote:

Interesting, because when I recently bought a printer from a store in
Northern California and asked if they still charged a restocking fee the
manager told me "No", not any more. I guess he lied! Hmmm.

But, did you try to return it? Some service plans seem like a good
idea until you try to get a store to honor them.

Assuming it is still in the return window, stop by, tell them a story
and see if they will take it back.

The only promise that matters is the one that is kept.

Wes

--
Reply to:
Whiskey Echo Sierra Sierra AT Gee Tee EYE EYE dot COM
Lycos address is a spam trap.

wrote in message
ups.com...
CompUSA does not sell returned or opened products.

That must be a relatively new policy. I had stopped shopping at CompUSA for
anything other than consumables because most of the stuff I was getting
there had obviously been opened and returned, was defective or missing
parts. If you really have stopped selling returned or opened products that
is extremely good news.

"C J Campbell" writes:

wrote in message
ups.com...
CompUSA does not sell returned or opened products.

That must be a relatively new policy. I had stopped shopping at CompUSA for
anything other than consumables because most of the stuff I was getting
there had obviously been opened and returned, was defective or missing
parts. If you really have stopped selling returned or opened products that
is extremely good news.

The other thing I've been noticing over the years is the actual floor space
devoted to computers is getting smaller with each year, while more of the space
is devoted to TVs, etc.

--
Michael Meissner
email:
http://www.the-meissners.org

In article , Dave R knows who
wrote:

Interesting, because when I recently bought a printer from a store in
Northern California and asked if they still charged a restocking fee the
manager told me "No", not any more. I guess he lied! Hmmm.

I've discussed this with the manager of my local CompUSA. I asked about
the restocking fees listed on a sign directly over his head; he told me
that WAS the official policy but was seldom actually enforced.

Basically, they're allowing themselves the option to make it hard on
you if they feel you're taking advantage of them. This of course will
be at the manager's discretion, so your mileage may vary.

Be aware though, that this may be changing. I've recently read that
CompUSA is or will be tracking individual customers sales records.
People who've made "excessive" return will be forbidden to return
anything again.

Originally Posted by

Dear Sir,

CompUSA's return policy is meant to provide the customer with a
reasonable way to get the right product, maintain satisfaction, and
become/remain a customer for life...

I am a Mac user and run a G3 B/W. In December I needed to purchase a CD/DVD burner, so I went to CompUSA. I knew that I would have to spend more money if I were to purchase a MAC burner, so I inquired about PC branded ones. The rep that I spoke with ensured me a number of times that I would have no problem with any of the choices that I made. I was suspicious about this, but he maintained that there would be no problem with returning the item within 14 days if it did not work.

I found that for an internal CD drive, a Mac requires a Mac compatible drive. Otherwise, the machine could not start up from the boot CD. So I then put the drive in an external housing.

At this point I tried to burn CD's and DVD's. The speed of the burner was not as stated on the box, and it was not able to burn both +/- DVD's as mentioned. I decided that I paid too much for a device that did not perform as stated; so, I went to return it.

At the return desk I was told that the device could not be returned because it was not the one that came in the box. I checked...and found out that the model# and serial# certainly did not match. But this WAS the drive that was sealed in the box. The sales Manager decided that I obviously was trying to pull a fast one on them, and the sales rep I spoke to would not vouch for me. So, at this point all I could do was contact Hewlett Packard. Now, since I had never owned PC hardware before, this seemed ridiculous. I understand the situation, but how did this item end up in the unopened box in the first place?

HP did switch out the device for me, but in the meantime I found the same drive that I purchased at a different store for $20.00 less. At this point I was the one that felt scammed.

My recommendation to anyone would be to open expensive hardware right in the store, before purchased if possible, but certainly before walking out with the merchandise. I myself will not be buying anything from them...the Internet is more trustworthy.

Doug

On Tue, 15 Mar 2005 22:47:31 -0800, "C J Campbell"
wrote:


wrote in message
oups.com...
CompUSA does not sell returned or opened products.

That must be a relatively new policy. I had stopped shopping at CompUSA for
anything other than consumables because most of the stuff I was getting
there had obviously been opened and returned, was defective or missing
parts. If you really have stopped selling returned or opened products that
is extremely good news.


I bought a wireless router there that was evidently used and returned
for it had a password and odd ip address assigned. I never could
break the password so it was pretty much useless to us. Couldn't set
anything.


- -

DL

http://www.geocities.com/dicklong14_ca/fanclub.htm

"Hopefully with the demon-spawn Whitsitt out of the
picture our scouts and coaches will be able to do their jobs."

::::::::::::::::


Halter Sucks!

In article , Michael Meissner
wrote:

That must be a relatively new policy. I had stopped shopping at CompUSA for
anything other than consumables because most of the stuff I was getting
there had obviously been opened and returned, was defective or missing
parts. If you really have stopped selling returned or opened products that
is extremely good news.

That's pretty funny, as CompUSA is notorious for just that. The way
this usually works is, a "clever" customer buys a high-end video card,
puts his old card in the box, and returns it for a refund.

Back when I managed computer stores, this was tried occasionally; the
difference is that CompUSA employees are too stupid to examine the
product and tell the difference.

Hence the recent crack-down on returns. The alternative would a
labor-and-training intensive examination and evaluation of returned
items.

In a related observation, the past year or two my local Good Will and
Salvation Army stores have been flooded with "open-box" department
store items. I was told it's become too labor-intensive to actually
check if an item is operational or complete, so if something is
returned for ANY reason (defective or just unwanted) - it's just
donated to charity and written off. Presumably at full price...